Chapter 1
I remember exactly where I was when he spoke to me.
Not Luca — not yet.
I was standing in the rain, soaked to the bone, waiting for the last bus which, of course, would never come.
My jeans clung to my legs, my black bomber jacket was hopelessly unprepared for this downpour, and my hair... Well, not much remained of my once-wavy locks.
Spring, I muttered to myself.
From twenty degrees to this soggy mess.
Serves me right for ignoring the weather app.
A few meters away, the bar door swung open. A man stepped outside — casual, as if he didn’t even notice the rain.
Leather jacket. Broad shoulders. Dark hair. Sharp jawline.
He was handsome — dangerously so.
He smoked — something that usually put me off, but with him it felt like a style choice.
As if he lived in black and white while the rest of us stumbled around in color.
His eyes found mine.
Held them.
Too long to be a coincidence.
Was it interest?
There was something in his gaze I couldn’t place.
I looked away, but still felt his attention on my skin — like a hand not touching me, yet claiming me all the same.
“You’ve been standing here a while.”
His voice was low. Warm. But there was an edge to it. Something sharp.
“Have you been watching me?” I shot back. Flirtation? Accusation? I wasn’t even sure myself.
He smiled — slowly.
“Maybe. Or maybe you just stood out. People who don’t match the setting tend to draw the eye.”
I let out a short snort.
“And what kind of setting is this, exactly? Sad girl in the rain?”
He took a drag from his cigarette.
“More like neo-noir. Unexpected twists. A woman who thinks she’s in control… until she loses it.”
Who does this guy think he is?
His gaze lingered on my face.
My heart beat just a little faster.
Was this dangerous?
Was I about to get kidnapped?
Or did he have something else in mind?
“And you?” I asked. “Are you the plot twist?”
He grinned again.
“Maybe I’m the distraction. Or the start of something you’ll regret later.”
Yep. Red flags all over.
“You don’t strike me as someone who regrets much,” I said at last.
He took another slow drag from his cigarette, then looked at me one more time.
“I’m still deciding,” he said softly. “But you?”
He stepped closer, stopping just under the awning.
His eyes ran over my face, my hair, my soaked-through jacket.
Not a pitying look. More… an assessment.
“My guess? You stubbornly said no to a taxi three times. And now you regret it.”
“Four times,” I said. “And yes — I’m stubborn.”
“I like stubborn.”
He said it like it was a rare thing. Something worth catching.
“You seem like someone who mostly likes to win,” I shot back.
His grin widened.
“Maybe. But some victories are only worth one night.”
Before I could reply, he stubbed out his cigarette on the wall.
“Stay right where you are. Sometimes the most interesting things only find you when you stop moving.”
And with that cryptic remark, he turned and disappeared back inside.
I watched him go.
Confused. Intrigued.
You don’t meet a man like that every day...
Ten long minutes passed.
Still no bus.
The rain had only grown heavier. My bomber jacket had surrendered.
Then, the bar door opened again.
Another man stepped outside.
Just as handsome — but in a different way.
Navy blue coat. Umbrella.
And a smile that caught me completely off guard.
His eyes found mine like he’d been expecting me.
And without hesitation, he walked straight over.
“You’ve been out here a while, huh?” he said.
Observation of the night, I thought.
“Is it that obvious?” I replied, gesturing to my drenched hair.
“Seems like you could use this more than I do.”
He held out his umbrella.
I opened my mouth to protest.
“But then you’ll get wet,” I said, frowning.
He shrugged.
“I’m the kind of man who only minds that when I’m actually soaked.
And besides, my taxi should be here any minute.
You, on the other hand… look like your next cold is already on its way.”
I was so thrown by his effortless kindness that I couldn’t even find the words.
How do you respond when a handsome stranger calls you a half-drowned duckling, but nicely?
“Um... thanks? I guess...”
He had a calmness about him.
Like he had nowhere else to be.
While everyone else was always rushing to something better, he was... here. With me.
“I’m Luca,” he said simply, placing the umbrella in my hand.
His fingers brushed mine just a second too long.
“And you?”
“Eva.”
He repeated my name softly.
As if tasting it.
As if he wanted to remember.
As if he already knew he wouldn’t forget.
A car pulled up. He opened the door, then turned to me.
“Can I offer you a ride?”
I hesitated.
Late. Rain. Stranger.
I should know better.
“Unless you’d rather stubbornly wait for your bus?”
His smile was playful. Not pushy.
“…Okay, sure. Thank you,” I said.
With a little more nervousness in my voice than I wanted.
I climbed into the taxi.
He slid to the other side — respectfully distant.
I clutched my phone tight — ready to dial 911.
Why did I get in this car again?
“Where are you headed?” he asked gently.
His voice cut through my spiraling thoughts.
Hmm. An address? Nope.
Too much, too soon.
“Station Square is fine.”
The rest of the ride was quiet.
Every now and then, I caught him glancing at me.
He wasn’t staring. He was observing.
Trying to understand.
Like he already knew something about me.
The taxi stopped.
“Okay. Thanks for the ride,” I said as I stepped out.
“That was definitely better than waiting in the rain.”
Great phrasing, Eva. Really smooth.
He chuckled softly and leaned toward my window.
“Let me tell you a secret, Eva.
The best nights are the ones where everything seems to go wrong...
until someone decides to do one small thing right.”
A wink.
He shut the door.
And he was gone.
I was left standing there, holding a stranger’s umbrella —
and a heart beating a little faster than before.
